The new Star Trek’s here! The new Star Trek’s here!

I love pre-orders! On the day that the latest Star Trek movie went on sale, it arrived in the mail from the DVD club. Yippee! I think I held it in my hands and did a little chair dance as I waved it around. I've only seen it twice, so I think I'm due for another viewing. In fact, I'm overdue! Probably this weekend.

I still think they did a wonderful job with this one. J. J. Abrams did a fantastic job in walking the fine line between appeasing long-term fans (like yours truly) and taking the franchise in a bold new direction. I also loved the way they threw me off-kilter, as in "Well, I know that character can't die, because they survived to old age in the original." Ahhhh, but when one is dealing with time travel and the space-time continuum, all bets are off, a lesson I should have learned by now.

I've speculated before about the continuing appeal of the Star Trek phenomenon. (I know not everyone feels that way, of course.) I see it as a continued yearning for a future in which many nations (and planets) are united as a force for the common good. A peaceful force, one concerned with contacting and learning from other cultures, not beating them into submission in order to convert them to our way of life OR to any particular religion. The Prime Directive must always apply. (We seem to have gotten away from that a bit here. W obviously isn't a Trek fan.) The world of Star Trek is one in which various and diverse groups of people collaborate for the greater good. It's idyllic, obviously, but...isn't that the whole point? Isn't our goal a peaceful existence with all people working together to achieve a better world? Shouldn't it be?

For me, Star Trek shows us the possibilities of what can be if we all get off this muy macho shit and start working together.

It's also kinda cool to encounter freaky aliens like the Horta, and to try to connect. That's where a Vulcan Mind Meld comes in handy.

I love this clip from SNL. Note the "I'm looking at you" gesture using the Vulcan hand gesture. Still makes me laugh.

It would be highly illogical to dislike this movie

We're back from "Star Trek." I'm still trying to get a handle on it, and process it. As I wrote on Facebook, I loved it so much I want to marry it.

If you're planning on seeing the movie, feel free to skip this entry (maybe you'll come back after you've seen it) so I don't color your opinion. I tried to hear as little about it as possible, other than just hearing that people liked it (and I have yet to hear anyone say they didn't like it). I'm weird that way...I prefer not to hear any plot details about a movie I'm really excited about seeing, so I'd hate it if I spoiled it for anyone else. So just consider this entire entry...

One Big Spoiler

Probably the strongest plus in this movie is the cast. They did such a great job picking these young actors to play iconic characters, and Zachary Quinto as the young Spock was especially dead on. Chris Pine also did a great job as Kirk, and it was interesting to see him develop more of the Kirk swagger. (Also cool to see the actual Kobayashi Maru test.) I really can't fault a single one of them, though, as they all did a wonderful job. It was fun to be introduced to each of these characters and to quickly realize who they were: the beautiful young Uhura in the bar, the gruff Bones on the transport shuttle, Sulu screwing up trying to get the Enterprise to warp speed when coming out of space dock (but quickly redeeming himself by saving Jim's life in a cool sword fight with a Romulan), the good-natured but ready-for-a-fight Scotty, and a very young Pavel Chekov talking about "Planet Wulcan." Speaking of Vulcans, everyone's favorite makes a significant appearance in this movie, which results in some very nifty interaction with the crew.

(This “motivational” poster made me laugh.) They struck a nice balance between trying to show the characters' development and staying true to some of their more well-known phrases and mannerisms. We got to hear a "Fascinating" from Spock, and an "I'm a doctor not an [insert other occupation here]" from Bones.

One of the best concepts in all science fiction is that of time travel and the possible paradoxes that could result. I think we all indulge in a little of that in our own lives, when we ask questions like, "What if I had done that differently?" Well, what if you had? Would your life have worked out the same? Or would it have changed significantly? Would it be worth taking a chance to change things, if you had no idea if they'd turn out better...or worse? This movie utilizes that concept and paradox fully and well, and with some surprising (at least for me) results. For example, early on I was certain that someone wouldn't die, because they survived into the later years of the characters. I was wrong, and that established that history had already been altered, so anything can happen. Nothing can be assumed.

At some point, I'm sure I've written here about my love of Star Trek. For me, it is about the joy of discovery...it's fascinating enough to discover new adventures in the here and now. What would it be like to travel to distant planets and galaxies and discover new species and new civilizations? That was their job. Then there's the fine line between diplomacy and encountering a hostile species that doesn't want to talk, they just want to kill you. Fun stuff. The original Star Trek series has always been my favorite because I loved the interaction between the crew, and I loved the characters. It was wonderful to see them revisited.

I'm sure that those who have already passed on (DeForest Kelley and James Doohan) would be pleased that their characters live on in movie franchise history. As Spock would say, "I have been and always shall be your friend."

Star Trek inspirational posters courtesy of The Great Geek Manual.